jazzyvee

Home at last Steely Dan.

I found this interesting link about Alembic today. It may be interesting to alembic lovers, haters and those in between. http://www.rollingstone.com/music/features/alembic-guitars-wickersham-grateful-dead-20141001

[quote name='luckylips' timestamp='1410015721' post='2545434'] In the for sale section of this site [url="http://s91.photobucket.com/user/luckylips2/media/Modulus%20Quantum%20Q6%20Semi%20Hollow/imagejpg2_zps3f4a7904.jpg.html"][/url] [/quote] I saw Steve Lawson play two of these basses at a gig on Sunday night, a fretted and fretless and they sounded superb. The only other time I've heard a Modulus bass is when Benny Reitveld was using one back in the early 90's.

[quote name='JTUK' timestamp='1410882578' post='2554274'] Decent cable and decent connectors, so that would be Klotz and Neutrik for me. There might be alternatives to Klotz but that is your standard, IMO. Obbm makes them, iirc as do a few others. I get mine made by a local studio engr. Expect to pay around £25 for a 6m cable [/quote] I have bought this cable and connectors and made up my own. No problems.

What frustrates me is when I put a gig up on Facebook and people indicate that they are coming to the gig and you know full well the person does not live anywhere close enough to attend the gig so what's the point of then saying you will go to the gig. Maybe some people just want to be seen to be supportive but not with bums on seats.

I'm interested in getting the Stanley Clarke Documentary when it comes out next year.

I saw Joe with the Crusaders a couple of times in the early 80's and a few years back when he was on tour with Randy Crawford, Steve Gadd and his son on double bass. Really sad news that we are losing so many great musicians in recent years.

I suppose that's one way of selling an unwanted guitar for more than its worth. Peter Townsend could have made a fortune from his trashed guitars.

It's a technique I use a lot on quieter passages where I want to keep a more mellow sound. Sometimes I use alternating thumb and finger for faster phrases which is something I do a lot on guitar.

Just caught this on the PMT web site. Nathan East is doing a session at their shop in Brum this Monday 15th September. Should be an interesting and informative night. http://www.pmtonline.co.uk/blog/2014/08/12/an-evening-with-nathan-east-pmt-birmingham/

I had one of these in the late 90's and thought it was pretty decent and did a few gigs with it. I gave it away to a friend who was learning to play bass when I got myself a mesa boogie rig.

I've played through a lot of various Ashdown cabs provided as backbone at venues over the past couple of years and have not found them able to reproduce the sound I need from my bass, they just sound muddy. I agree with the other posters, try as many cabs that you can and listen critically and also with the cab behind you as that is how you will usually be listening to it on-stage.

I've been using those yellow spongy things and fender rubbery ear plugs for about 10 years when I was doing a lot of guitar gigs. Whilst they were fine at cutting down the volume on-stage, they do not attenuate the music in an even way so it was difficult to manage my tone and volume relative to the other instruments. For bass I found them to be almost useless and it became difficult to hear the pitch of my notes properly. I have now gone for the full in ear moulded plugs by ACS and they are great. Just after i got them though I found this type of thing on ebay which may be a compromise between the foam and the custom moulded ones and also in the price range you are searching. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/DIY-Custom-Molded-Silicone-Ear-Plugs-Custom-Fit-2-PAIRS-Quick-Dispatch-/321252036042?pt=UK_BOI_ProtectiveGear_RL&hash=item4acc1d0dca

Here is one of our forum members from Holland doing it with his Alembic Spoiler bass....!!!! [media]http://youtu.be/GIcT7icUzuU[/media]

I've used Ashdown cabs a lot at festivals and gigs where a back line is provided and i've never been happy with their sound to be honest. I would recommend checking out some Mesa Boogie Power house cabs. I have 3 of them and they are superb. I've been using them for about 10 yrs now. A 4x10 and a 1x15 which i generally individually and a 2x10 that I use on it's own or with the 1x15. They have a lot of punch and clarity and sound very solid. I don't play rock music but Mesa gear is used a lot in rock so you should be fine with the music you play and the techniques you use. I hope you find something suitable. It took me ages listening to cabs and amps before i settled on these. They were right as soon as I plugged them in.

I have had those FretFX thingies on my bass since about 2006/2007 and they have been a great asset when playing dark stages. Mine is the earlier version that has AAA batteries and has two brightness levels. They fit fine and although it makes the neck slightly wider if you use your thumb over the neck, I got used to it and I have recommended them to a few bass players. No idea if they went ahead with the purchase though. Recently I had to solder one of the connections as it came apart just where the join is by the side of the nut, other than that it still has the original batteries. When I was touring as a guitarist I used this kind of thing, glow dots and they worked perfectly. http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/WO-UK-100PCS-Home-Wall-Glow-In-The-Dark-Stars-Stickers-Decal-Kids-Nursery-Room-/181462655032?pt=UK_Children_s_Decor&hash=item2a40046038 Jazzyvee

Some pictures from my regular guitar playing days touring as guitarist for Apache Indian and Musical Youth. Soundchecking at Womad Reading with Apache Indian ( Strat Ultra) 2005 [attachment=170584:305201_10151100884399192_1295791883_n.jpg] Afro Latin Festival Belgium with Apache Indian ( Alembic Orion Guitar) 2006 [attachment=170586:1930267_17789479191_1520_n.jpg] Womad Singapore with Apache Indian (Parker Fly) 2005 [attachment=170588:1930267_17789509191_3322_n.jpg] Ljubliana Slovenia with Musical Youth ( Fender USA Strat) 2007 [attachment=170587:1930267_17789499191_2726_n.jpg] [attachment=170589:1930267_17789529191_4180_n.jpg]

Interesting video clip and good to see musicians using little if any effects pedals. I then got distracted and watching other rig rundowns ending up on George Bensons signature fender amp. Nice little earner for Gene especially if it's cash in hand :-)

Here is a clip of my series Ii alembic played by Nate at the Alembic gathering in California a couple of years ago. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CGpSJO8zBDo&list=UUQwyLh07zkCIZuRPMJL0Nmw You can also try listening to Bass Folk Song No. 10 from the most recent Stanley Clarke Band album it has quite a long section with the bass solo. [url="https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/bass-folk-song-no.-10/id380065097?i=380065144"]https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/bass-folk-song-no.-10/id380065097?i=380065144[/url]